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 In addition to these publicly available Elijah, Ravens, and the Widow lessons and ideas, you'll also want to check out The Elijah and Elisha Super Set of lessons. It teaches three major Elijah & Elisha stories in one super series -including the Widow's story. Written by our Writing Team for Supporting Members with an extra level of detail and creativity. Set lesson summaries and Bible background are open to all. The following Sunday School lessons and ideas are organized by teaching medium: arts and crafts, video, drama, puppets, software, cooking (foods), games, music, and more. Glean what you need, share what you can. 

Computer and Video Lessons, Ideas, Activities, and Resources for Elijah and the Widow

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Elijah and the Widow of Zarephath, 1 Kings 17, oil, jar, son, etc.
Elijah fed by ravens, 1 Kings 17, birds, food, Kerith Brook


Bible lessons and ideas about the Elijah and the Widow -with Computer, software, interactive stories, games, video, audio-visual, movie, video-tape, animated Bible, etc.


In addition to the ideas below,  Supporting Members can also access the Writing Team's Elijah Super Set here
Last edited by Luanne Payne
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Elijah and the Widow of Zarephath

Computer Workshop

Summary of Lesson Activities:

Students will complete the Elijah and the Widow story found in Sunday Software's Elijah and Jonah software.

Sunday Software's Elijah and Jonah software is now available FOR FREE to Rotation.org's supporting members for use in their church and church member homes. Learn more and download the program.


Scripture:

1 Kings 17 (presented in the software)

Preparation:


LESSON PLAN

Opening

Welcome students and explain what you hope they'll learn today and how they will be learning it!
Elijah-Widow-why-punish
Elijah and the Widow of Zarephath story asks and answers the following questions. You can put them to your students as introductory questions:

  • Does God care about outsiders? and people who don't worship him?
  • Does God punish people for their sins?
  • What is a prophet and what do they do?
  • How does God try to get our attention?
  • How does God send messages of hope to us?
  • What is the purpose of miracles? (signs)

(Feel free to put your own emphasis on one or more of these questions.)

Explore to the story as found in the software:

Page 1: Introducing the story

Page 2: Elijah flees to be fed by ravens. (stop and play the feeding game)

Page 3: Elijah goes to Zarephath “a town just outside the Promised Land” and finds/tests the Widow’s faith. Study notes you’ll encounter will help describe the Widow as one who represents Israel, and her son –the future of Israel.

Page 4: When the son dies, the widow asks if she is being punished for her sins. But Elijah immediately attempts to revive the son.

Page 5: Elijah questions God in his prayer wondering if God had taken the widow’s son, and asks for his life back, which God grants. The widow replies, “Now I know you are a man of God and the word of the Lord in your mouth is to be trusted.” We don’t get a direct answer as to whether God caused this situation, or used it to his advantage to teach Israel and Elijah an important lesson. It’s important to remember that Elijah also was learning what God had in store for his people.

Options at the End of Page 5:

a) Listen to story again (listen to it as a story about Israel, not the widow).

b) Zaresphlatt game. Answer questions in between levels to continue playing.

c) Rewrite the story using images and issues from today's world.

d) “Questions to Ponder” ...for deeper study.



Student Worksheet:

The teacher should print a copy of the attachment, and check-off the items that you want your students to complete. Then make copies of your customized worksheets and give to the students.

Notes from Neil

Key Concepts:

The Widow and her dying son were not Israelites. Metaphorically, a widow in the Bible can represent the dependent, those who have lost their future, or fallen out of disfavor. Her son can represent her hopes and dreams. By performing the miracle of their sustaining (through the flour and oil which didn't run out), and the raising back to life of the son, Elijah is sending a powerful message of hope to a society that believe God had abandoned them, ...when in reality, it was THEY who had abandoned God. By the miracle of faith, ...becoming a believer, the widow announces at the end of the story what God hopes to hear from us all.

Key Verses:

"Am I being punished for my sins?"

“Now I know that you are a man of God and that the word of the Lord from your mouth is the truth.”

There are several miracles in this story:

  • That Elijah would be called outside Israel to Sidon, to a lowly widow.
  • That Elijah would be fed by ravens.
  • The flour and oil that didn't run out.
  • The boy being raised from the dead.
  • The woman becoming a believer.

Miracles in the Bible are almost always SIGNS and MESSAGES that REVEAL WHO God is and WHAT God wants. What do each of these miracles say about God and his message to us and our situation today?

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Elijah and the Widow of Zarephath
Movie Workshop

Summary: Through watching about 15 minutes of an animated video from Nest the children will learn about the life of Elijah. They will see how Elijah learned from his experiences to fully trust God and trust in his own relationship with God and how the widow of Zarephath came to have faith in God.

Scripture
Story: 1 Kings 17
Key/Memory Verse: 1 Kings 17:24 (NLT)

Objectives for Cinema Workshop

Participants will be able to:

  • Find the story of Elijah in the Old Testament of the Bible
  • Understand that Elijah's time away hiding was a time to strengthen his trust in God.
  • Contrast Elijah and the woman's view of God at different points in the story. How did Elijah help the widow come to know God? Compare this to our own experiences in helping people come to know God

Prepration

Read the Bible BacElijahVideokground

Materials List

  • Bibles
  • Computer with Internet access
  • Easel with paper
  • Markers
  • Printer
  • TV and video player (DVD player)
  • Video: The Animated Stories from the Bible: Elijah (Nest Family Entertainment, )

Advance Preparation Requirements

For younger students, go to the web site http://www.bibleforchildren.org/
Choose English from the list of languages. Then scroll down and click on “story” next to “The Man of Fire.” This will download a PDF file of the story to tell.

Make sure you know how to use the TV/video.

Cue the video to the starting point: after Caleb comes to warn Elijah, when the temple is shown (about 1:33 minutes into the video).

Write the memory verse on a piece of easel paper.

Make a “Things to listen for” list. Include these items: Ahab, Jezebel, and Elijah. Next to each of these items, draw stick figures to help the non-readers. Examples: draw a stick figure of a king with a crown for Ahab, a queen for Jezebel, and a stick figure with a chest sword for Elijah -- like the Elijah in the video.


Lesson

Open

Greet your students warmly, welcoming them to the Cinema Workshop. Introduce yourself and any other adults.

Say: Today we will learn about the prophet Elijah. We will talk about trusting God.

Let’s begin with prayer. Ask for any prayer requests. Ask if anyone would like to lead the group in prayer. Be prepared to say a prayer yourself, working in prayer requests. A suggestion: “Dear God, We are thankful to be here today. Help us to be open to your word. Help us to learn to trust you. Amen.

Dig

Say: Our story is found in a book of the Bible called First Kings.

Ask: Where do you suppose we would find this book in the Bible? (Old Testament)

Why is the Bible divided into two testaments? (New Testament was written after Jesus was on earth; the Old Testament is the Bible that Jesus learned when he was a child)

For 1st and 2nd graders: Read them the story on pages 3-11 of the downloaded Bible story “The Man of Fire.”

For 3rd grade and up:

Say: Besides being divided into two testaments, the 66 books in the Bible are further divided into collections. We say that the book of First Kings is part of a collection of Bible books called “History.” These books tell of the interaction of God with people in history. These stories happened thousands of years ago.

Distribute Bibles if needed. Encourage everyone to bring his or her Bible every week.
Have them find the story in 1 Kings, chapter 17, verses 1-24.

Have the students take turns reading the verses.

Note: After the second week of the Rotation the students will become more familiar with the story. Have them locate the Scripture in their Bibles. Then ask them to tell you the story. Fill in any missing details by using their Bibles.

For all students:

Say: Let’s take a look at what we are going to see in our video.

Refer to the “Things to listen for” poster. Introduce the characters in the story.
Make sure that the students understand the following two concepts:

The God of Israel: our God; the God of the people of Israel.

Baal: a false god; Baal was the god of weather, supposedly determining when it would rain.

Show the Video:

START the video at the designated place after Caleb comes to warn Elijah (see “Advance Preparation” above).

POINT OUT King Ahab. Don’t stop the action, just point out the character.

POINT OUT Elijah (when he comes into the temple).

PAUSE after Elijah runs away after his “conversation” with God (at 5:32).

A note about pausing a video: Use the PAUSE button. It's your most powerful video teaching tool.

Ask: Elijah toppled some statues. Did that part happen in the Bible? (no)

Say: Sometimes videos are made with extra parts in them that are not from the Bible. It is good for us to notice when something has been added to our Bible story.

Ask: Did Elijah really want to run away to hide? (no)

Say: Elijah didn’t want to run away. He wanted to face Ahab and put an end to his wickedness. But Elijah did as God commanded.

HIT PLAY

VIEW scene of about 2 minutes 20 seconds. PAUSE after Elijah is fed by ravens, when the temple is shown again (at 7:50).

Ask: What stored supplies did Elijah have? (none) Show this portion again if the kids didn’t see it. Don't be afraid to view an important scene a second time.

Who brought Elijah food? (ravens, a type of bird)

What did Elijah say to God? (thanks, but how much longer Lord? Let me return to finish what I’ve started)

What is a prophet? (a messenger of God)

Say: As messengers of God, the prophets really wanted to be able to deliver God’s word! But notice how Elijah waits patiently for God.

HIT PLAY

VIEW scene of about 2 minutes 15 seconds. PAUSE after the “play” (at 10:05).

Ask: Was that play a part of our Bible story? (no)

What do you think of their belief in Baal? (accept all answers)

HIT PLAY

VIEW scene of about 1 minute 30 seconds. PAUSE after God tells Elijah to go to Zarephath, when the house appears (at 11:38).

Ask: Why did Elijah need to leave? (because God told him to, because the stream had dried up)

Where did God tell Elijah to go? (to Zarephath)

Was Elijah willing to go? (yes, but he still is anxious to be able to help his people)

Say: Elijah is wondering what God’s plans are. But by going to Zarephath Elijah shows that he really is willing to trust God.

HIT PLAY

VIEW scene of about 2 minutes 10 seconds. PAUSE after the miracle occurs and the woman thanks Elijah for the food (at 13:50).

Ask: What just happened? (Elijah had said feed me first and your flour and oil will not run out and it didn’t!)

HIT PLAY

VIEW scene of about 3 minutes. STOP after Elijah leaves and the voice says, “Your work here is done” (at 16:45).

Ask: What miracle just occurred? (the boy was raised from the dead)

Reflect

Ask: What do you suppose that Elijah learned from God? (about waiting for God, for his timing, to learn to trust God)

What about the woman, what do you suppose she learned about God?

Did she know who God was when Elijah first met her?

Say: The woman likely knew who God was but it doesn’t seem like she had a close, personal relationship with God like Elijah did.

Ask: How does this story, of the woman’s relationship with God, remind you of the story of your relationship to God?

Do you feel that you have a personal relationship with God?

Do you trust God for all things?

How do Elijah’s actions show the woman who God is?

How do our actions show other people who God is?

Say: Let’s read our memory verse together:

“Then the woman told Elijah, ‘Now I know for sure that you are a man of God, and that the LORD truly speaks through you.’” 1 Kings 17:24

Say: This shows that the woman’s view of God has changed. The woman sees God as loving and caring. God is loving and caring!


Additional Suggestions

If desired, continue watching the video to see the story of Elijah and the prophets of Baal (about 6 more minutes of video).

Say: The rest of this video shows us what happens next in Elijah’s life. It shows how Elijah’s time of waiting for God was preparing him for tougher times.

Sources

MacQueen, Neil. "A MANUAL for the "VIDEO ~ A-V" WORKSHOP” https://www.rotation.org/topic...-video--a-v-workshop

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, Copyright © 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved.



Written for Rotation.org by Carol Hulbert
Copyright Rotation.org

A representative of Rotation.org reformatted this post to improve readability.

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Elijah and the Widow of Zarephath

Video Workshop

Summary

The class will watch a segment of Disney’s The Lion King and then explore how God strengthened Elijah for the upcoming challenges in his life, using a simple drama exercise.

Scripture

Story: 1 Kings 17
Key/Memory Verse: 1 Kings 17:24 (NLT)

Objectives

At the end of this lesson the children will:

  • Find the story of Elijah in the Old Testament of the Bible.
  • Understand that Elijah's time away hiding was a time to strengthen his trust in God; bigger challenges were coming in Elijah's life.

PreparationlionKing

 Read Bible Background

Materials List

  • Bibles
  • Chalkboard or whiteboard
  • Cups
  • Drink
  • Napkins or popcorn bags
  • Popcorn
  • TV and VCR or DVD player
  • Video: Disney’s The Lion King
  • Costumes for Elijah, Simba, and reporter (these can be simple character suggestion costumes, such as a headscarf for Elijah, cat ears on a headband for Simba, and a microphone and hat for the reporter)

Advance Preparation Requirements

Have the video ready at the clip, or figure out how to start DVD it at appropriate scene: approximately 52 minutes into the video -- Simba is in the desert after fleeing his home, where he meets Timon and Pumbaa.

Watch full video and be able to fill in the plot, if necessary, so that children will understand what is going on. (Summaries available online, such as at IMDb:   http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0110357/plotsummary )

Prepare snacks.


Lesson

Open

Greet the children as they enter. Ask the children to describe challenges they had in their lives (Examples: learning to ride a bike, moving to a new school, loss of a loved one).

Tell the children that God was with them through those challenges.

Tell the children that today they will be learning about Elijah, and how God strengthened him for upcoming challenges in his life.

Dig

Distribute Bibles and have the children look up 1 Kings 17. Tell the children to listen for the challenge Elijah faced, and how God prepared him for it.

Read the passage or have the children take turns reading. List Elijah’s challenge and preparation on the board.

Pass out popcorn and drink.

Tell the children they will be watching a part of Disney’s The Lion King. Tell the children to watch for the challenge Simba faced (having to leave his home as a child, then return as an adult to challenge his uncle Scar for rightful leadership of the Pride Lands) and how he was prepared for it (he remembered what his father had told him, and Nala encouraged him to do the right thing).

If children seem unfamiliar with the story of The Lion King, briefly fill them in on the first part of the story.

Show the video clip: approximately 52 minutes into the video, Simba is in the desert after fleeing his home, where he meets Timon and Pumbaa, and grows into an adult lion. Nala finds Simba and encourages him to return home. Simba initially refuses, then changes his mind after some soul searching. Stop the video after Simba leaves to return home. Running time for this clip is about 28 minutes.

List children’s suggestions of Simba’s challenge and how he prepared to meet it on the board.

Reflect

Choose three children to be the actors for the reflection on the two stories – one to be Elijah, one to be Simba, and one to be a reporter.

 Introduce the cast by saying: “Here at WXYZ TV we are covering breaking news as Elijah and Simba are returning from life-changing challenges. Our on-the-scene reporter is talking to them right now. Let’s listen in …

 Have the reporter ask “Elijah” and “Simba” the following questions (the rest of the children may help “Elijah” and “Simba” answer): 

  • How would you describe your time away?
  •  How did you handle the challenge placed before you?
  •  How did you grow?
  •  What event helped you grow?
  •  Who were the people (animals/friends) that helped you grow?

Have the children form a circle. Close with a prayer to thank God for the challenges he gives us, because they make us grow and make us stronger for the challenges that lie ahead of us. Ask God for his guidance in facing challenges this week.


Additional Suggestions

Adaptations - Younger Children

Skip the reporter’s questions and instead let the children talk about how they grew after they did something challenging.

Adaptations - Older Children

Invite older children to read ahead in 1 Kings 18:16–40. Discuss how the challenges Elijah faced in 1 Kings 17 prepared him for the meeting with the prophets of Baal.


 

Written by Stephanie Smith for Rotation.org
Copyright 2006 Rotation.org

A representative of Rotation.org reformatted this post to improve readability.

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DVD - “Elijah and the Widow” (New Superbook Series)

Phoebe sends Chris out shopping for a list of items that she wants him to pick up at many different specialty shops. When Chris secretly decides he knows better and can get everything in a "one-stop-shop," Superbook whisks the kids away. They spend time with Elijah in Cherith's Ravine and travel with him to Zarephath.

Lesson: Obey even if you don't understand the reason. (Animated - approx. 28 mins)

See Rotation.org reviews of the "New Superbook" DVD Series for more details on this series link.

Elijah and the Widow of Zarephath in 1st Kings 18 one of the Elijah lesson presentations found in the SunScool Bible App for Kids.

You can find in all four levels of the program under the "Elijah" menu.

Levels 1 and 2:

  • C9-1: Elijah obeys God (Elijah fed by Ravens)
    1 Kings 17:1-7
  • C9-2: Elijah trusts God (Widow of Zarephath, arising her son)
    1 Kings 17:8-16

Levels 3 and 4:

  • C9-1 : God's Punishment  (Ahab becomes king, Jezebel, drought, ravens)
    1 Kings 16:29-33; 17:1-7
  • C9-2 : God's Provision, Elijah and the Widow of Zarephath
    1 Kings 17:7-24

The App is free, ecumenical, and can be downloaded for use on tablets, smartphones, Windows, and Mac!    Get the download link and look up the story you need in our Outline of all 170+ stories in SunScool. That page also includes app helps.

SunScool Bible App for Kids

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